America’s Broken Senate
There might not be a more persuasive argument against an elected senate than the American example. From filibustering to partisan deadlock to disproportionate representation, this broken institution south of our…
Senate
Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.- David Macdonald takes a closer look at a Fraser Institute study on income mobility, and finds strong evidence that there's a significant lack of…
On executive decisions
My post yesterday on the Senate's choice to remind Canadians of its existence by blocking a bill passed by the House of Commons has sparked plenty of discussion. But I'll…
On bad bets
It's been glaringly obvious to those of us paying attention that the Cons have set up plenty of means to keep dictating the terms of Canadian politics from beyond the…
Yes, there are wackos on the left as well as the right, but…
… those on the right sure as hell seem to be coming out of the woodwork more often these days. We in Canada have the pride of Saskatchewan, Conservative MP…
Shaking Hands with the Devil You Think You Know….
While the Cons huff and puff and try to simply blow our House of Parliament down, let me play devil’s advocate here and rant about something that no one else…
An Open Letter to Stephen Harper Regarding Senate Reform
Dear Prime Minister Stephen Harper: I am writing today in response to reports that you will seek a Supreme Court reference on the constitutionality of your proposals for Senate reform.…
What do I think of the Canadian Senate?
Read Jennifer Ditchburn in the Globe and Mail – Senate stubborn on making information about chamber more accessible. It is laughable about how hard the Canadian Senate makes it to…
This is one instance…
… where I support the stance of the NDP – abolish the Senate. Or at least gut it and start over. I say this not only in the context of…
Canada’s Worst Senator Patrick Brazeau Disappears From Twitter
No comment yet from Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who appointed Brazeau to the Senate in 2008. On Wednesday, I blogged about the Conservative Senator, who called Canadian Press reporter Jennifer…
Worst Canadian in The World: Senator Patrick Brazeau
Meet Patrick Brazeau (pictured), the sexist Canadian senator who called Ottawa-based reporter, Jennifer Ditchburn, a bitch yesterday. Her crime: she’d done her job by highlighting his poor attendance record in…
In defence of 14-year-old girls
So it was that MP Charlie Angus, the NDP’s self-appointed guardian of civility, has declared that Twitter has “turned us all into 14-year-olds in a cafeteria” where “verybody gets to…
Senator John Kerry Speaks the Scary, Ugly Truth on Climate Change
Screen shot 2012-06-19 at 4.37.47 PM.png There are precious few voices in the U.S. capital these days that are speaking the truth about climate change. Which is what makes Senator…
The Senate Election that Refuses to Die
Three months ago, I wrote a post warning of coming Senate elections here in British Columbia. Now it seems that the private member’s bill providing for such elections, despite Premier…
Sunday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your Sunday reading. – It’s undoubtedly an embarrassment for John Baird to have leapt at a thoroughly implausible bit of anti-UN spin. But I’d think there’s more…
Parliament in Review: March 27, 2012
Tuesday, March 27 saw a day dominated by the type of serious discussion about the role of the financial sector that we should expect in the years to come –…
Why I am eating my ballot.
With one week to go in the Alberta general election campaign, I’m wondering what you perceive the biggest issues to be. Perhaps it is F-35 fighter jets, maybe it is…
Why I am eating my ballot.
With one week to go in the Alberta general election campaign, I’m wondering what you perceive the biggest issues to be. Perhaps it is F-35 fighter jets, maybe it is…
Conservative Senators bring the optics on budget eve
Conservative Senators are complaining today about news that they’ll be losing a cafeteria in one of the buildings in which Senators work, the Victoria Building. Former Conservative party president, Don…